Firefighters save house in Fitchburg barn blaze

FITCHBURG -- Firefighters knocked down a two-alarm barn fire that jumped to the attached home at 177 Wanoosnoc Road early Wednesday evening.

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A second alarm was called shortly after firefighters responded to the blaze, which was reported at about 5:38 p.m.

"When Engine 1 showed up we had heavy fire coming out of the (barn)," said Deputy Fire Chief John Curran. "The guys did one hell of a job to save the house -- put that in capital letters."

Firefighters were able to limit the fire damage on the home but there was smoke damage, he said.

The fire apparently started with a battery charger for a snowblower in the barn when the owner walked away, Curran said.

"I believe that was the case at this time, but we'll look at it further," he said.

There were three propane tanks in the barn and one of them apparently caught fire, Curran said.

Firefighters could not get a fire hydrant across the street to work right away so they funneled water stored on a few fire engines with a combined 3,150 gallons to Engine 1, which sprayed the flames until a hose was connected to a hydrant on Connors Street, said Fire Chief Kevin Roy.

"We had a little problem with the hydrant, but that happens," he said. "We're used to it, you have to deal with it, it's New England."

Firefighters eventually got the first hydrant working.

Close to 30 firefighters were on scene battling the blaze.

The fire started in the detached barn but jumped several feet to an original barn attached to the home.

The first floor of the attached barn is still unfinished but there was a large living room on the second floor, said the owner's girlfriend, Beth Herbert. She declined to give the owner's name.

The house was built around 1851, Roy said.

It is adjacent to the Meadowbrook Village housing complex.

There were three Fitchburg fire engines and a ladder truck at the scene alone with an engine and ladder truck from Leominster.

Westminster and Townsend fire departments covered the rest of the city during the fire.